Stores Closing Due to the Pandemic and Joe Biden

Stores Closing Due to the Pandemic and Joe Biden

By Mark Schwendau

The Covid-19 pandemic and Joe Biden’s failed leadership have offered many American retail businesses a one-two knockout punch. While many of these businesses will continue to do business with less brick and mortar locations, some plan to rely more heavily on online sales. The main point to be made in this news story is the amount of these store closures really is unprecedented.  While some may argue that this has been brewing for a long time, the fact of the matter is these closures are going to result in the loss of tens of thousands of jobs and, as always, the buck stops in the Oval Office.

Amazon (department stores) (66 stores)

American Eagle Outfitters (clothing stores) 250 stores

AT&T (telecommunications stores) 250 stores

Banana Republic and GAP (clothing stores) 220 stores

Bath and Body Works (department stores) 50 stores

Bed Bath and Beyond (department store) 350 stores

Best Buy (electronics store) 60 stores

Brooks Brothers (clothing stores) 126 stores

Carters (clothing stores) 200 stores

Chipotle (restaurants) 65 stores

Christopher & Banks (department stores) 449 stores

Century 21 (department stores) 13 stores

CVS Pharmacy (drug stores) 900 stores

Disney (theme stores) 119 stores closed, with 23 left open

Francesca’s (clothing stores) 250 stores

GameStop (video games stores) 557 stores with over 1,000 stores closed previously

GNC Live Well (dietary aid stores) 1,200 stores

Godiva (candy stores) 128 stores

JC Penny (department stores) 175 stores

Kmart (department stores) 350 stores

Kroeger (grocery stores) 13 stores

L’ Occitane (department stores) 23 stores

Macy’s (department stores) 131 stores

Microsoft (software stores) 70 stores

Nordstrom (department stores) 16 stores

Office Depot (office supply stores)

Pier 1 Imports (department stores) 942 stores

Rite Aid (drug stores) 145 stores

Sally Beauty Supply (personal care stores) 350 stores

Sears (department stores) 95 stores

Signet Parent Company (Kay/Zales/Jared Jewelry stores) 380 stores

Stage Stores (clothing stores) 738 stores

Stein Mart (discount department store) 279 stores

Tailored Brands (clothing stores) 500 stores

The Children’s Place (clothing store) 300 stores

Victoria’s Secret (clothing store) 300 stores

Walgreens (drug stores) 200 stores

Other companies planning closures, such as McDonald’s and Subway restaurants, will also be making some closures in the New Year. McDonald’s plans to close all remaining locations within Walmart Stores, and Subway may do the same. Meanwhile, Chipotle attributed their closures to the inability to find qualified store managers for all of their national locations.

Some stores, such as Pier 1 Imports, are now gone forever. They were working on Chapter 11 restructuring in 2020 when the pandemic hit.

Many of these companies are blaming inflation and the downturn in the economy as the main reason for their sudden store closures and falling profit margins of their bottom line. Others, such as Office Depot, have complained of supply chain issues as so many of their products are made abroad.

Acting President Joe Biden took credit for seemingly ending the upcoming anticipated rail strike before the Midterm Election.  That strike now seems to be back on for some time in December after the recent election.  Should that strike occur, the American public should know that an estimated 40 percent of our goods are transported to our stores by railroads. We now also have an ongoing looming diesel fuel shortage. Semi-tractor-trailers also provide most of our goods to our brick-and-mortar storefronts.

Discretionary spending goes down with inflation, and that is a historical fact. When people have less money to spend in stores because the necessities of such things as food, housing, energy, and transportation go up, retail businesses, both large and small, feel their pain.

Look for some of your favorite shopping destinations to disappear in 2023. Look for the unemployment rolls to balloon in early 2023. Experts say things will get worse before they get better, but those same experts are at a loss for predicting when things will get better.

And for all those still suffering from (Donald) Trump Derangement Syndrome (TDS), he predicted this would happen if Joe Biden were in our highest office.  Whether you like the man or not, he is right far more than he is wrong to the batting average of some 90 percent, and he does know business and economics, lessons Democrats have yet to learn.

The really creepy thing about doing this story for you, the collapse of the retail market could lead to a domino effect on other segments of the economy which could lead to depression. The old adage, “A recession is when one of your two neighbors is unemployed. A depression is when the neighbors on both sides of you are unemployed,” may soon come to pass once again.

See also: “Bet the Globalists and Communists Did Not See This One Coming!”

Copyright © 2022 by Mark S. Schwendau

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Mark S. Schwendau is a retired technology professor who has always had a sideline in news-editorial writing where his byline has been, “Bringing little known news to people who simply want to know the truth.”  He classifies himself as a Christian conservative who God cast to be a realist.  Mark is an award-winning educator who has published seven books and numerous peer-reviewed trade journal articles, some of which can be found on the Internet.  His father was a fireman/paramedic, while his mother was a registered nurse.  He holds degrees in technology education, industrial management, OSHA Safety, and Driver’s Education.  His website is www.IDrawIWrite.Tech.

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